"Tartuffe"

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses "Tartuffe" and other comedies by Moliere and the greatness of this French writer in his ability to turn everyday events into masterpieces. The paper shows that Moliere's work reminds us that there is little that is new under the sun, but that this hardly matters in art. Indeed, some of the most profound pleasures that we take from art are based on the fact that artists have the ability to make what is old and tired into something that is simultaneously both fresh and familiar. The paper also compares the comedy of the 17th century to today's humor.

From the Paper:

"Much of the appeal of these stock characters to Moliere must also have been based in his fundamental understanding - as an actor as well as a playwright - to the way in which humor itself works. To understand how humor works, it is important to understand that humor is almost always at someone's expense. The most harmless kinds of humor are those jokes that come at our own expense: If the only person made to look foolish by a joke is the person telling it, then it has indeed done little if any harm."

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